Jimmie Ward: Tom Brady coming out of retirement…

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Whether through comments of his own or the musings of others, the early days of Tom Brady’s retirement have featured plenty of speculation about whether he will reverse course and return to the NFL.

One thought is that Brady would like to be released from his Buccaneers contract at some point this offseason so that he’ll be free to pick a new team. Brady grew up as a 49ers fan and they’re a team that comes up often during discussions of such a scenario.

Current 49ers defensive back Jimmie Ward weighed in on that possibility on Instagram Live recently.

“I don’t think Tom Brady is coming out of retirement. . . . I’m saying, it doesn’t sound crazy, Tom Brady coming out of retirement to play one more year, but I don’t know,” Ward said, via 49ersWebZone.com. “Didn’t he come out with his speech, his retirement speech already? So, I don’t know, man. I don’t know, bro. Tom Brady, I’m not saying he can’t do it. I feel like he can. He’s proven it, that he can go to another franchise, and win a Super Bowl that year.”

Ward noted that similar chatter went on regarding Kobe Bryant after he retired from the NBA and that Bryant never got back on the court after his final game in 2016. It’s too soon to know if the same will be true of Brady, which means there’s sure to be more speculation about the possibility this offseason.